Monte-Carlo previews and predictions: Federer vs. Garcia-Lopez, Goffin vs. Lopez

Roger Federer will contest his first match since the Australian Open when he takes the court against Guillermo Garcia-Lopez on Tuesday in Monte-Carlo. David Goffin, with whom Federer practiced on Sunday, is also in action.

(3) Roger Federer vs. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez

Federer’s comeback from minor knee surgery had been scheduled to take place last month in Miami. Illness derailed those plans, so the 34-year-old Swiss is set to return at this week’s Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. Federer’s season so far consists of just two tournaments–a runner-up showing in Brisbane and a semifinal performance at the Australian Open. The world No. 3 is a relatively modest 28-12 lifetime in Monte-Carlo, where he is still searching for his first-ever title (0-4 in finals).

Up first for Federer on Tuesday is a fourth career meeting with Garcia-Lopez. All three of their previous encounters have gone the 17-time Grand Slam champion’s way, but the two veterans have not faced each other since 2009. Federer is a perfect 7-0 in total sets against Garcia-Lopez without requiring even a single tiebreaker. The 38th-ranked Spaniard gave himself another shot at the former world No. 1 by defeating Thomaz Bellucci 7-5, 6-1 on Monday. Garcia-Lopez is still under .500 on the season with an 8-9 record and he is 1-9 in his last 10 efforts against Top-10 opponents, with his only such win during this stretch coming at the expense of a less-than-100 percent Marin Cilic last spring in Rome. Federer may not be at his absolute best given the circumstances, but he should have more than enough to maintain his mastery of Garcia-Lopez.

Pick: Federer in 2

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(11) David Goffin vs. Feliciano Lopez

Goffin will be aiming for a third consecutive Masters 1000 semifinal appearance when be begins week in Monte-Carlo on Tuesday. Of course, the 13th-ranked Belgian cannot get ahead of himself in that effort, especially given that he is in the same quarter of the draw as Novak Djokovic. After seeing his Indian Wells run come to an end at the hands of Milos Raonic, Goffin fell to Djokovic in the Miami semis. The 11th seed, who is a stellar 16-6 for the year, is making his first career appearance at this tournament.

Speaking of first, Goffin has never faced Lopez heading into Tuesday’s action. Lopez is making a quick turnaround after playing his way into the Houston semifinals, at which point he fell to eventual champion Juan Monaco 6-4, 6-2. The 23rd-ranked Spaniard is a mediocre 10-8 for his 2016 campaign and 4-9 lifetime in Monte-Carlo. He is one of the few Spaniards who does by far his best work on a fast hard court or grass as opposed to clay, and he would much rather go up against Goffin on a slicker surface. All the factors point to a routine victory for the favorite.

Pick: Goffin in 2

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